How To Write A Personal Mission Statement

Many of our clients inevitably ask us how to write a personal mission statement. After they clearly see the value and the power of creating a mission statement for their business, they begin to think of how it could revolutionize their own lives. For some tips and tricks for how to get started, try taking a look at our mission statement template.

Using our formula, writing a personal mission statement is not much different from writing one for your business. However, there are definitely some differences and some things you will need to change for your personal mission statement, for obvious reasons.

According to our mission statement template, to craft a mission statement for your business you want to ask yourself the following questions:

1. What is our purpose? (Why do we exist)
2. Who benefits from our existence? (Who are our customers/clients)
3. What is it that we do for those who benefit from our existence? (What do we do?)
4. How do we do that? (In what way do we provide this service)

Using these questions is a good place to start. While the above questions are for a business mission statement, your personal business statement questions would be as follows:

1. What is my purpose?
2. Who benefits from my existence?
3. What is it that I do for those who benefit from my existence?
4. How do I do that?

Consider these following example answers, for say, someone who is a doctor (it may be useful to write a separate mission statement for what you eventually want to be so you can start the trajectory towards it now!). Think about the things you’re passionate about and that interest you. Answer these questions as the ideal person you would eventually like to be:

1. My purpose is to help people become well again, and provide a stable, loving, and passionate presence for my family and friends.

3. I provide a solid foundation, and a strong yet open minded willingness to learn and grow for all my family, friends and patients.

4. I do that by constantly striving to be better in everything I do, one day at a time.

Next, you want to take these answers and make them a short paragraph, or condense them into a couple of sentences. Remember to go wild with your personal mission statement. It’s not so much about who you are currently but who you’d eventually like to be. Throw out as many examples as you can. Really visualize your truest potential and focus on making a statement that will help motivate you to become that. Here’s an example derived from the above answers:

“My mission in life is to benefit everyone I come across, and provide a stable, loving, and passionate presence for my family and friends. I do that by constantly striving to be better in everything I do, one day at a time and living with a solid foundation. My family, my friends, and my patients all can see my devotion to their well-being and work hard to make sure that I reap the rewards of my presence and love for them.”

As with the business example, we don’t have to stick 100% to exactly the answers to the questions. Use those as a baseline. But make sure you cover all the bases. I hope that helps you craft a personal mission statement that will propel you to all of your dreams and ambitions!

If you need some additional examples for motivation, check out our mission statement examples page.